Carlson labels Cruz a liar after he calls Capitol rioters ‘terrorists’

On Thursday, Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) was challenged by Fox News host Tucker Carlson over remarks in which he described the Capitol storming on January 6 as a “violent terrorist attack.”

Cruz, speaking on the senate floor, had condemned those who stormed the Capitol building and honored law enforcement officials’ “incredible courage” during a hearing with US Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger on Wednesday. 

However, the prominent right-wing TV host didn’t appreciate Cruz’s characterization of the rioters who stormed the Capitol.

Interviewing the senator live, Carlson said: “You never use words carelessly and yet you called this a terror attack when by no definition was it a terror attack. That’s a lie. You told that lie on purpose and I’m wondering why you did.”

Cruz came back groveling, admitting, “The way I phrased things yesterday, it was sloppy, and it was frankly dumb.” 

But before he could finish, Carlson interrupted, claiming he didn’t buy the senator’s explanation, noting that he’d known him for a long time, and suggesting he would not make such a careless remark unintentionally.

Cruz went on to reiterate that he had spoken out of turn and claimed he had frequently used the word “terrorist” to characterize people who assaulted cops.

Carlson, who is never one to let things go, claimed Cruz’s use of the word “terrorist” was “playing into” the left’s ability to characterize the rioters as “foreign combatants” and their attempts to “distort” the narrative of what happened on January 6.

The senator followed up on Twitter, claiming he had “used a dumb choice of words.” 

Thursday marked the first anniversary of the storming of the Capitol building, during which five people died, including a police officer, and dozens of law enforcement agents were injured. Four officers committed suicide in the wake of the attack.